Pulp Fiction
Pulp Fiction is a UK VHS release by Touchstone Home Video on 24th April 1995. Description Cast * John Travolta as Vincent Vega: A criminal working for Marsellus Wallace and Jules' partner. Tarantino cast Travolta in Pulp Fiction because Michael Madsen, who had played Vic Vega in Reservoir Dogs, chose to appear in Kevin Costner's Wyatt Earp instead. Madsen has since expressed regret over his decision. Harvey Weinstein pushed for Daniel Day-Lewis in the part. Travolta accepted a reduced rate — sources claim either US$100,000 or US$140,000 — but the film's success and his Academy Award nomination for Best Actor revitalized his career. In 2004, Tarantino discussed an idea for a movie starring Travolta and Madsen as the "Vega Brothers"; the concept remains unrealized. * Samuel L. Jackson as Jules Winnfield: A criminal working for Wallace and Vincent's partner. Tarantino wrote the part of Jules with Jackson in mind, but his first audition was overshadowed by Paul Calderón; Jackson had assumed the audition was merely a reading. Weinstein convinced him to audition a second time, and his performance of the final diner scene won over Tarantino. Jules was originally scripted with a giant afro, but Tarantino and Jackson agreed on the Jheri-curled wig seen in the film; one reviewer took it as a "tacit comic statement about the ghettoization of blacks in movies". Jackson received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Calderón appears in the movie as Paul, a bartender at Marsellus' social club, as well as Marsellus' assistant. * Uma Thurman as Mia Wallace: Wallace's wife and an aspiring actress. Miramax favored Holly Hunter or Meg Ryan for the role of Mia. Alfre Woodard and Meg Tilly were also considered, but Tarantino wanted Thurman after their first meeting. She dominated the film's promotional material, appearing on a bed with cigarette in hand. She was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. Despite being launched into the celebrity A-list, Thurman chose not to do any big-budget films for the following three years. Thurman later starred in Tarantino's two Kill Bill movies (2003, 2004). * Harvey Keitel as Winston Wolfe: A mysterious and intimidating cleaner who aids Jules and Vincent. Tarantino wrote the part of Wolfe specifically for Keitel, who had starred in Reservoir Dogs and was instrumental in its production. In Tarantino's words, "Harvey had been my favorite actor since I was 16 years old." Keitel had played a character similarly employed as a "cleaner" in Point of No Return (1993). * Tim Roth as Ringo/"Pumpkin": A burglar and Yolanda's boyfriend. Roth had starred in Reservoir Dogs alongside Keitel. He had used an American accent in Reservoir Dogs, but uses his natural, London accent in Pulp Fiction. Though Tarantino had written the part with Roth in mind, TriStar head Mike Medavoy preferred Johnny Depp or Christian Slater. Early in development, Tarantino had contemplated casting Roth as Vincent and Gary Oldman as Jules, rewriting the characters as "two English guys". * Amanda Plummer as Yolanda/"Honey Bunny": Ringo's girlfriend and partner in crime. Tarantino wrote the role of Yolanda for Plummer to partner her with Roth onscreen. Roth had introduced Tarantino to her, saying: "I want to work with Amanda in one of your films, but she has to have a really big gun." * Maria de Medeiros as Fabienne: Butch's girlfriend. Tarantino met de Medeiros, a Portuguese actress, while traveling with Reservoir Dogs around the European film festival circuit. De Medeiros had also previously worked with fellow cast member Uma Thurman on the 1990 film Henry & June. * Ving Rhames as Marsellus Wallace: A violent crime boss and employer of Jules and Vincent. Before Rhames was cast, the part of Wallace was offered to Sid Haig, but Haig passed on the role. According to Bender, Rhames gave "one of the best auditions I've ever seen." His acclaimed performance led to his being cast in big-budget features such as Mission Impossible (1996), Con Air (1997), and Out of Sight (1998). * Eric Stoltz as Lance: Vincent's drug dealer. Courtney Love later said that Kurt Cobain was originally offered the role of Lance; if he had taken it, Love would have played the role of his wife. Tarantino denies that he ever met Cobain and insists he never offered him a role in the movie. Gary Oldman was the preferred choice among TriStar executives, based on his portrayal of drug-dealing pimp Drexl Spivey in True Romance (1993). * Rosanna Arquette as Jody: Lance's wife. Pam Grier read for the role, but Tarantino did not believe audiences would find it plausible for Lance to yell at her. Tarantino later cast Grier as the lead role for Jackie Brown. Ellen DeGeneres also read for Jody. * Christopher Walken as Captain Koons: An ex-soldier who delivers a young Butch his father's gold watch. During Walken's lengthy monologue, he makes mention of a soldier called "Winocki". Joe Winocki is the name of a character in the 1943 film Air Force directed by Howard Hawks, one of Tarantino's personal favorite directors. Walken had also appeared in True Romance. * Bruce Willis as Butch Coolidge: Willis was a major star, but most of his recent films had been critical and box office disappointments. As described by Peter Bart, taking a role in the modestly budgeted film "meant lowering his salary and risking his star status, but the strategy paid off royally: Pulp Fiction not only brought Willis new respect as an actor, but also earned him several million dollars as a result of his gross participation." Willis' appearance and physical presence were crucial to Tarantino's interest in casting him: "Bruce has the look of a 50s actor. I can't think of any other star that has that look." Chandler Lindauer plays the young Butch Coolidge. Additionally, Bronagh Gallagher appears as Trudi, Jody's friend who does little but smoke out of a bong during the scene where Vincent has to put a needle in Mia. According to author Jason Bailey, "Quentin thought it would be funny to have this casual observer who just happened to be there. All of this was born out of the experience of, when you go to someone's house to buy drugs, there are always people who are just there." Phil LaMarr portrays Marvin, an associate of Jules and Vincent. LaMarr auditioned for Tarantino because both had done a show for the Groundlings, an improv group, a few months before casting of the film began. He read for the roles of Jules Winnfield and Brett before being cast as Marvin. Tarantino appears as Jimmie, Jules' friend who provides a safehouse for them to clean up a murder. Tarantino was initially unsure whether he wanted to play Jimmie or Lance. He gave the Lance role to Stoltz, as he wanted to be behind the camera during Mia's overdose scene. Frank Whaley portrays Brett, an associate of Jules and Vincent who has a briefcase requested by Marcellus. Whaley met Tarantino while he was filming Reservoir Dogs at a lab in Sundance Institute. As he recalled, "we ended up meeting and spending time together, and I liked him, so I was really happy when he asked me to be in this movie." Burr Steersappears as Roger, a friend of Brett's nicknamed "Flock of Seagulls" by Jules. The scene of the confrontation between Brett and Jules went through several takes due to Steers making mistakes. Steers recalled in an interview that he had found acting difficult due to the loudness of the gunshots. Angela Jones portrays Esmeralda Villalobos, a cab driver who aids Butch's escape. Her casting and character were inspired by her performance in the 1991 short film Curdled, which was later remade into a 1996 feature film which Jones also starred in and Tarantino was involved in financing. Duane Whitaker, Peter Greene, and Stephen Hibbert played Maynard, Zed, and the gimp, respectively. According to The Daily Beast, these "three psycho hillbillies" that torture Butch in Maynard's shop's basement are a reference to the film Deliverance. Credits Trailers and info Original 1995 release # The Nightmare Before Christmas (Coming Soon on Video) (Voiceover: Rupert Farley) # When a Man Loves a Woman # Sirens # Léon Rental Re-release # Sirens # I Love Trouble # Leon # Terminal Velocity # Pulp Fiction Soundtrack # VSC 18 Warning (Walt Disney/Buena Vista) Category:Touchstone Home Video Category:UK VHS/DVD Releases Category:VHS Category:1995 VHS Releases Category:Crime Videos by Walt Disney Category:Crime Videos by Buena Vista Category:Crime Videos by Touchstone Home Video Category:BBFC 18 Category:Walt Disney and Buena Vista Videos with National Captioning (1993-1996) Category:VHS Videos with The Nightmare Before Christmas trailer (announced by John Sachs and Rupert Farley) Category:Thriller Videos by Walt Disney Category:Thriller Videos by Buena Vista Category:Thriller Videos by Touchstone Home Video